Goodbye 2011, and SBITC

I can't believe that the time has come again to say goodbye to another year. It seriously feels like yesterday that I wrote my last goodbye. It had been a rough year, and I was thrilled to say goodbye, and hello to all the good things that were surely to come my way in 2011. And now here we are. I wanted to compile a list of all the memorable things from this past year, and it was such fun reading back over all the posts from this past year. In no particular order, these are some of the things that stood out the most to me from 2011:

Dating: The year began with somewhat of a love triangle, and my "unlucky in love" continued with countless less-than-memorable dates, a reality check with Oliver, and a change of heart with Corey. However, 2011 didn't let me down entirely. The story is just beginning with Hunk, and I'm hoping the ending is a good one. Ironically, I also penned my Relationship Manifesto in early 2011, and am happy to report that there isn't one thing I would change about it. I still feel like it holds to true to what I'm looking for, and I think the decisions that were made this year reflect that.

Work: I accepted a new job late 2010 and worked my tail off all of last year. The result? I reached my quota (along with the rest of my team- a first for the company) and we will all be headed off to Hawaii in just a couple of weeks. I'm taking my sister, and I can't freaking wait! This year also saw the loss of Steve Jobs, and for our company, it was heartbreaking to say the least.

Exercise: 2011 was my first full year back in triathlon, and it was a great one. I was determined to find validation in healthy ways, and I feel like I really succeeded. I completed 4 triathlons total, including my very first Olympic distance. I also ran the Diva Dash and the Cap 10K. Not one to function well without a goal, I signed up for a training group through work in November and am well on my way to running my first half-marathon the end of January.

Hobbies: I've volunteered at the animal shelter for almost 3 years now, but 2011 saw me bring home my very first foster dog. After 8 weeks of in-home social rehabilitation, Pippi ended up hitting the jackpot of homes and is living happily ever after with her new parents (they take her everywhere) and she is doing fantastic! I didn't get to travel as much as I would have liked, but I was able to fit in a girl's trip to Port Aransas, and TWO trips to my new favorite city, Denver. Perhaps my favorite hobby-related moment though happened just this past weekend. Finally, after 5 long years, I became my fantasy football league CHAMPION!!!  After a heated, close final match-up against my brother, my team came out on top 121-114. It was pure awesomeness, and now I have a little extra money in the bank for Hawaii.

So there you have it, a pretty great year overall. But this also brings me to my next goodbye. Single Blonde in the City began as a project mostly centered around dating. I had been wounded countless times, and felt like I had stories to share with people who could likely relate. After 2+ years of writing and over 25,000 hits on my blog, I feel like it's time to say goodbye. While my most recent relationship is still very new, and there is no guarantee that it will work out, I just don't feel motivated to write about dating anymore. This blog has been such a tremendous outlet for me, but I just don't feel like the things that I'm writing about are really that relevant to life as a single girl, per se.

Which leads me to my next project, and still very much a work in progress. Starting January 1, I will be posting as Amy in Austin. Go to it, bookmark it, add it to your blog readers (and please note that the web address is not exactly as I would like it to be, as the one I wanted was already taken). I hope that you will continue to visit me. Just know that the content will be moving to a different angle. (Hence the "work in  progress" part.) I want to continue with the great progress I feel that I made in 2011 as far as being a healthier person, and will likely write more about healthy choices in relation to food, exercise and relationships. I probably won't be writing as frequently, but I hope that the content is better that way. Meaningful, helpful, and still entertaining to read.

I hope that everyone has a brilliant New Year's Eve, and is able to reflect on their life this past year, but then quickly look forward to the possibilities in the year ahead. Thank you so much for making Single Blonde in the City so much fun for me!